What does truck gear ratio mean?
2 Answers
Gear ratio refers to the transmission ratio of the internal transmission gears in a vehicle. There are many gears in a truck's transmission, and the transmission ratios between these gears vary. Vehicles also have main reduction gears, and different vehicle models have different main reduction gear ratios. Related information: When starting a car normally, first gear is required. First gear has a relatively large transmission ratio, resulting in greater torque, which allows the vehicle to start smoothly. However, the speed in first gear is not very high, and most vehicles can only reach a maximum speed of 20 kilometers per hour in first gear. If a small gear drives a large gear to rotate, the transmission ratio is relatively large, resulting in greater output torque. If a large gear drives a small gear to rotate, the transmission ratio is relatively small, resulting in higher output speed. Function of reduction gears: The main reduction gear in the vehicle differential serves to reduce speed and increase torque. When the engine operates normally, the speed is very high, so the transmission and main reduction gear are needed to reduce the speed, thereby increasing torque and allowing the vehicle to drive normally. Truck gear ratio: The gear ratio of a truck generally refers to the ratio of the main reduction gear. This ratio is fixed, and changing it requires replacing the main reduction gear.
When I first started driving trucks, I didn't understand gear ratios either. It wasn't until I drove through the mountainous roads of Yunnan, Guizhou, and Sichuan that I realized their importance. Simply put, the gear ratio is the number of turns the transmission output shaft makes for every single turn of the wheel. The higher the gear ratio number, like the common 5.73 or 6.16, the more power you have for climbing hills, but even with the pedal to the metal on highways, you'll only reach about 70-80 km/h, and it's particularly fuel-intensive. Our fleet uses smaller gear ratios like 4.11 for flat terrains, which can save 3-4 liters per 100 kilometers in fuel consumption. Changing gear ratios requires caution—last time I did it, my speedometer became inaccurate, and the ABS started throwing errors, costing me an extra 2,000 yuan to fix. Now when buying a truck, I always have the salesperson calculate the total gear ratio and the speed at 1,500 RPM, as this directly determines transportation costs.
